Tundra Media Blog

Script notes from the edge (Production Blog)

Sofa Super Store Fire (Update)

January 12th, 2009 by bcouzens in Production | No Comments →

While much of the work on this project is being done as time permits, substantial progress has been made in the past couple of months. Most of the audio has been transcribed for video integration, and replacement fire engines have been designed and constructed for later scene replacement. Final steps in the first phase of this project include fire fighter modeling and combustion system refinement. Once these final models and particle systems are in place, animation associated with the most critical aspects of the fire (in accordance with the phase II report) will be developed.

The second phase of the fire recreation will center around the development of the models for integration in a real time environment. It is our hope that the final product will help fire fighters better understand the complexities of fighting fires under the conditions found in the Sofa Super Store.

Sofa Super Store Fire

July 1st, 2008 by bcouzens in Production | No Comments →

On June 18, 2007, nine firefighters from the Charleston SC Fire Department perished in a commercial warehouse showroom fire. Since that time, there have been multiple investigations into the incident, and there is much to be learned from this tragedy. Tundra Media and Advanced Safety Products, Inc., have teamed up to produce an animated forensic recreation of the events as described in the phase 2 report from the City of Charleston Post Incident Assessment and Review Team. It is our hope that this work will help educate firefighters so that these lessons are not lost.
Interior layout with casualtiesSofa Super Store Exterior Initial attack

Here are some updated images showing the progress of the development on the Sofa Super Store forensic animation.

Flash

January 18th, 2008 by bcouzens in Uncategorized | No Comments →

While I have often felt that the Adobe Flash format was a bit gimmicky, I suddenly find myself having to learn not only Flash and Action Script (tm Adobe Inc.), but also having to learn just about everything else associated with web development. While I never actually wanted to learn web design, I have begun to appreciate the added creative element that these elements add to not only web development, but communications in general. I am hoping to make some significant interactive changes to our distribution web site at http://www.nimsvideo.com in the next month or two. I’m crossing my fingers hoping everything works out for the best.

Photoshop Grid Tip

July 22nd, 2007 by bcouzens in Uncategorized | No Comments →

Duck TechIf you have ever wanted an easier way to produce a visible grid for a layer in Photoshop, the May/June issue of Layers Magazine provides an easy way to accomplish this that you may not have previously thought of. This tip requires vanishing point. All you have to do is create a new file with a transparent background or solid as desired. Go into vanishing point, set your grid up but then click ok while holding down the alt key (pc), this will place the grid onto your layer. After this, just select the lines and expand the selection, stroke the selection, or do whatever you want.

The image above is a result of getting carried away with this process (note the grid in the background).

Hayman Fire

June 3rd, 2007 by bcouzens in Production | No Comments →

Hayman Fire: NOAA File PhotoOn June 8th., of this year it will be five years to the day when the Hayman Fire, the largest fire in Colorado state history, was started in Tarryall Gulch near Lake George Colorado.

Back in the summer of 2002, Colorado was facing a significant drought. As a result, there was concern over the potential for devastating wildfires across the state. In the late afternoon of June 8, 2002 a US Forest Service Employee “Terry Barton” reported a small fire in the campground area near the town of Lake George. What was originally reported as a small fire (about 20 x 20 ft.) moving slowly through the grass, spread rapidly driven by 45 mph winds. While the fire was attacked aggressively, it would spread to become the largest wildfire in Colorado history, burning over 138,000 acres at a total cost expected to reach up to 50 million dollars.

I was on duty the day the fire started at Parker Fire Station #73 in the suburbs of Denver. We had just finished cleaning up a two car accident when the deputy on scene brought to my attention, a column of smoke near the foothills along the South Platte river. While the smoke was some distance from our location (about 90 miles by car) it was clear that the fire was already plume dominated and appeared to be growing exponentially. It was almost dusk and temperatures which had been in the 90’s were beginning to fall, and it was expected that humidities would rise. This would have been helpful to the firefighters on scene if it had occurred, however while the temperatures dropped a little, the humidity didn’t rise as expected.Hayman Fire at night

The following afternoon, June 9th., I was scheduled to work as a bicycle medic at a local festival. During the early morning, I needed to drive into Denver to pick something up. As I began driving into the downtown area, I was struck by the fact that motorists were forced to drive with their headlights on due to heavy smoke in the air. This would not have seemed unusual if we weren’t for the fact that we were no where near the fire line in Lake George (about 126 miles away).

By early evening, we were receiving pages that the fire was estimated at 38,000 acres. The paramedic working with me that evening assumed that the dispatcher had made an error and the fire was only 3,800 acres, however no error had been made, and we soon started hearing reports of large scale evacuations and missing patrol officers.

In all, the Hayman fire consumed 138,000 acres of prime forest lands. To date, it is the largest single fire in Colorado history. The fire also made wildfire history by making the largest single day run of 19 miles. It would be later learned that the fire was started by an emotionally distraught employee of the forest service, a fact that is still a mark of betrayal for the dedicated men and women who manage and protect our forests.

In September of 2002, I was contacted by a local television station (The Network DC) to provide technical assistance on a documentary they were considering on the fire. Douglas County had been heavily effected by the fire, and wanted a historical documentary to chronicle the event. While I had initially been contacted to provide technical expertise, I soon became a co-producer on the project, and conducted most of the interviews. These interviews portrayed acts of bravery, dedication, and caring for most of the agencies and individuals assigned to control the fire, and by those who were directly in the fires path. However some of these stories portrayed significant errors in judgment that could have proven catastrophic.

To be continued…

Job tips for Animators

May 24th, 2007 by bcouzens in Production | No Comments →

ThinkerIf you are planning on a career in animation, there are several decisions that you will have to make at some point in your development. First, what do you want to do with your career, what kind of work environment are you looking for, how will market trends influence your prospects, and what does your future boss want from you, so fortunately nothing too tough.

The need for qualified animators is great, and the industry will only expand, but keep in mind that your competition is not just from other animators in the U.S.A. (if that is where you are) but frequently animation jobs, like so many others, are being outsourced to India, Korea, Canada, South America, and just about any other place you can think of. Don’t be discouraged though, because “the market is only going to expand”, and good animators,CG artists…etc., are always employable.

Getting your Dream Job

If you are new to the industry, and if you are reading this, you most likely are, keep in mind that you will likely have to pay some dues. Trust me, there are many other people who have come before you and they expect you to go to the back of the line. There are ways to avoid this, and one of the best ways to go to the front of the pack, is to be “Outstanding.” Simply put, as with any other job, the better you are, the better your chances of getting a big fat pay check. Of course it is helpful to keep in mind that it takes time and lots of practice to become an expert in any field.

So, how do you get your dream job? Well, that really depends on what you are looking to do. While each position may have unique characteristics, there are some things that are essentially universal.

1. Be passionate about your job. The more you enjoy what you are doing, the better you will do it.

2. Possess the skills that your employer is looking for. If you want a job with Dreamworks SKG, or Disney/Pixar, then you need to look at their job postings to find the skills they are looking for, or better yet call them and ask.

3. Have a reasonable understanding of other jobs that interface with the position that you are interested in. If you are planning to be a modeler, then you should have some understanding of the influence you may have on the rigging crew, the lighting crew and certainly the render wranglers.

4. Play well with others. No employer of any quality will be interested in you if you can’t work well in a team environment. Animation is a team sport!

5. Be efficient! You will be pressed to complete projects on time and on budget. These concepts may not seem important to you, but believe me, they are important to your boss.

6. Nothing is ever perfect. Get over it! This is a hard concept for many artists and equally difficult for employers. Certainly employers want to produce the best product possible for their clients, and most certainly artists are interested in producing their best work, but somewhere lying deep within is reality. If you are an artist, know that you will never create the perfect piece of art. Employers generally know this, but will push you to push yourself. However keep in mind that while you are looking to achieve the perfect vertex placement, you are costing someone money. If the customer can’t appreciate your perfect vertex or brush stroke, they may not be amused that you also achieved a cost overrun of 25%.

7. Learn and appreciate the concept of production pipelines. If you are working independently you may be able to get away with sloppy naming conventions or file management, but if you are working as part of a team, everything you do will effect someone else. Learn to do your job efficiently and in a manner that will allow anyone to pick up your work and run with it if you are out of the office lying on a beach. (No phone calls please, I’m dreaming about Cancun!)

8. Read everything you can get your hands on regarding your new profession. You should be the one person that your boss can count on to be up to date on industry trends.

Anyways, these are just a few tips that come to mind. It certainly never hurts to have the best Demo Reel, or a terrific personality. It also never hurts if your best friend is a top Hollywood producer, but keep in mind that rules are meant to be broken, so put yourself out there, take chances, and no matter what, don’t under any circumstances sell yourself short.

Back to Animation

April 11th, 2007 by bcouzens in Production | No Comments →

vitruvian-man1.gifIt’s been a long time since I have had the opportunity to spend some quality time animating. I have been so busy acting as a Producer over the last couple of years, I have had very little time for animation. Of course this is one of my passions, so work has become a bit more enjoyable of late. I was able to spend some quality time brushing up on my particle skills by designing a tornado today. Initially I didn’t think that there was much practical application for this at the moment other than a stress release (you get to destroy small villages without repercussions), but there may be some use for this as a value added bonus for NIMS ICS Pro Edition users.



NIMS/ICS Pro Edition (Production Completed)

March 9th, 2007 by bcouzens in Production | No Comments →

Ok, after over four years, it’s finally out of here. Nope, it’s not done yet…it is with the authoring house, but by the end of the month it should be. At least it is out of my hands for a while. As I look back on this project, I never thought it would take so long, nor did I expect the world to change so much. I can say it has been an exciting journey and a tremendous learning experience for everyone associated with the production.









Earth rise